The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for cancer of the left tonsil, as there was no evidence to support a finding that his condition was related to his military service or exposure to herbicides.
The deciding factor: The AFIP medical specialists concluded that there is inadequate or insufficient evidence to determine an association between exposure to herbicides and tonsil cancer, and that other factors such as tobacco use and alcohol consumption are more likely contributors to the veteran's condition.
- Claimed conditions
- cancer of the left tonsil
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 26, 2008
- Citation
- 0810023
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 680 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0810023.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss and cancer of the left tonsil, both related to exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam. The Veteran's right ear hearing loss was diagnosed during service with significant threshold shifts, meeting VA criteria for a disability. His cancer of the left tonsil is presumed to be due to his exposure to herbicides.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for cancer of the left tonsil and tongue, which he contends was caused by exposure to herbicide agents during service, is being remanded due to a lack of a VA medical opinion on the nature and etiology of his condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine if his cancer of the left tonsil and tongue base is related to service exposure to herbicides. An audiologist will also be asked to review the claims file to assess whether his hearing loss in both ears is due to in-service acoustic trauma.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's cancer of the left tonsil did not have its onset during active military service or within one year of his discharge from service, and is not etiologically related to service. Therefore, service connection for this condition cannot be established.
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